Is Ohio the Next “Frontier of Fracking?”

December 9, 2011

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Environmental groups say more must be done to ensure that Ohio does not become the next "frontier of fracking." Horizontal hydraulic fracturing, the drilling method commonly known as "fracking," involves injecting millions of gallons of water and chemicals into deep underground wells to break up rock and release natural gas.

While supporters say it provides a substantial source of energy, some of the chemicals are toxic and the process is hazardous to the environment, says Matt Trokan, water conservation coordinator for the Sierra ClubOhio Chapter.

"Fracking is very different than conventional drilling and it threatens our water and our air, particularly the disposal of waste water from the fracking activities."

Currently there are 40 horizontally-fractured wells in Ohio – and 4,000 more expected in the next four years. Natural gas companies are not required to disclose the chemicals used in fracking, and Trokan says the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency cannot properly monitor all the horizontal drilling and wastewater disposal sites. His group and others insist more research is needed, along with better policies and regulations to ensure public and environmental health.

http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/23656-1

DEP inspections show more shale well cement problems

But violations data released last week by the state Department of Environmental Protection show problems persist with the cemented strings of steel casing meant to protect groundwater from gas and fluids in Marcellus wells.

In August, DEP inspectors found defective or inadequate casing or cement at eight Marcellus wells, including Hess Corp.'s Davidson well in Scott Twp., Wayne County - the first casing violation found in the county where only a handful of Marcellus wells have been drilled.

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Land grab sets up taxpayers for fracking fall-out

Home mortgage loans prohibit heavy industrial activity and hazardous materials on the property. Fracking brings both.

The mortgaged property needs to stay safe and uncontaminated because lenders sell 90 percent of all home mortgage loans to the secondary mortgage market in exchange for funds to make new home loans. Gas leases allow gas companies to truck in tankers with chemicals, transport flammable gas and toxic waste, operate heavy equipment 24/7 and store gas underground, for years, all in a person’s backyard

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Scientists: Drilling threat to water

Dozens of scientists, including four from the prestigious National Academy of Sciences, warned Gov. Andrew Cuomo that it will be practically impossible for municipal drinking water systems to protect against chemicals used in natural gas hydraulic fracturing, also called hydrofracking.

Their letter to the governor, released Thursday, was signed by 59 experts from 18 states and seven foreign countries, included scientists from Cornell University, the State University College of Environmental Science and Forestry, and the State University at Stony Brook.

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Science Lags as Health Problems Emerge Near Gas Fields

ProPublica examined government environmental reports and private lawsuits and interviewed scores of residents, physicians and toxicologists in four states—Colorado, Texas, Wyoming and Pennsylvania—that are drilling hot spots. Our review showed that cases like Wallace-Babb's go back a decade in parts of Colorado and Wyoming, where drilling has taken place for years. They are just beginning to emerge in Pennsylvania, where the Marcellus Shale drilling boom began in earnest in 2008.

Concern about such health complaints is longstanding—Congress held hearings on them in 2007 at which Wallace-Babb testified. But the extent and cause of the problems remains unknown. Neither states nor the federal government have systematically tracked reports from people like Wallace-Babb, or comprehensively investigated how drilling affects human health.

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Shale Gas Industry Insider: We Are Losing the Messaging War on Fracking

The shale gas industry has had its collective ass kicked, and kicked hard, by Gasland and others opposed to hydraulic fracturing and needs to redefine its core messages to defuse a burgeoning negative public perception of the controversial drilling technique, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association (COGA) said today.

“What we’ve seen in the last few years, and I hope it’s peaking, is a completely heightened public awareness around hydraulic fracturing and an increase in active opposition,” Tisha Conoly-Schuller said this afternoon. “I hate to credit the movie Gasland, but it’s really changed the conversation.”

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Skindell trying to halt "fracking"

A Lakewood lawmaker wants to put a hold on horizontal hydraulic fracturing in Ohio until a study can be done by the EPA. Sen. Michael Skindell (D) has introduced two bills that would make regulations on drilling operations stricter and impose a moratorium.

"The people of Ohio should be protected by proper regulations of the oil and gas industry," Skindell said.

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